I often am asked how many people attend Jacob’s Well, and I believe it is the wrong question to ask. It’s not who is in attendance, it’s who has been affected by our presence in the community.

People who attend? Just a couple of people. People who are impacted? Right now, too many to count. It’s the “impact” of church presence that I desire to perpetuate.

Jacob’s Well is a Missional church, in which the members of the church are actively engaged in the creation of compassionate community around them. The Missional church is not about changing the church or gospel to form to the culture around it, but rather to form a compassionate community in the midst of the people and culture that already exist.

This “new” way of doing church isn’t really new at all. In the New Testament, churches were formed within the context of the culture. So, in a way, this “new” way is going back to the root of how churches were formed following Christ’s time here on earth.

Being a part of the Missional church means finding out what needs there are in your daily life and becoming actively involved in your community.

For example, I am currently deeply entrenched with the Montrose Suzuki Kids program.This was one of the programs that was cut from the curriculum when the levy did not pass a few years ago. A group of parents got together and raised money, petitioned the school board, and somehow, the Montrose Suzuki Kids program has continued.

Now, none of us in the Suzuki group would call this a “church,” but we do help each other out and form community, which is what is at the heart of what it means to be a Missional Christian.

So, if you look at the community around you, do you see places where you could be involved? Are there needs that could be met?

How can you impact your world to form compassionate community in your midst?